Tigers Settle For Tie At Ohio Wesleyan In Regular Season Finale
(from Wittenberg Universtiy web site) - For Imediate Release
Oct. 26, 2007
SPRINGFIELD, Ohio - The Wittenberg Tigers didn't quite close out the 2007 regular season as they had hoped, but it wasn't for lack of effort that they ended up with a 0-0 tie at Ohio Wesleyan University.
Despite outshooting the home team 16-8 and generating no fewer than four quality scoring chances in the game, the Tigers wound up with a tie to end the finest regular season in school history with a 15-2-2 overall record. It also secured the first unbeaten North Coast Athletic Conference (NCAC) record in school history as Wittenberg finished at 6-0-2 in the league. The Tigers hit the crossbar twice in the game, including a late second-half shot by junior
forward Corey Shubitowski (Columbus, Ohio/Watterson).
Moments earlier, senior midfielder Amanda Farrell (Loveland, Ohio/Loveland) was stopped on a header from close range. Wittenberg's last big scoring chance came in the first overtime, but OWU's netminder Laura VanHoey (31 -Rochester, Mich.) was up to the task with a save on a penalty shot by senior midfielder Lindsey Rusch (Columbus, Ohio/Worthington Kilbourne).
The Tigers, who are the No. 1 seed in next week's NCAC Tournament for the first time ever, picked up four saves from senior goalkeeper Meghan O'Rourke (Columbus, Ohio/Worthington Kilbourne) in another outstanding defensive effort. It was Wittenberg's school-record 15th save of the 2007 season and the 12th individually for O'Rourke.
Contact: Ryan Maurer E-Mail: rmaurer@wittenberg.edu
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Women's Soccer Ties Wittenberg
The Bishop defense excelled in a scoreless deadlock in NCAC action on Friday. (OWU Sports Information)
Oct. 26, 2007
Freshman goalkeeper Laura VanHoey (31 - Rochester, Mich.) made a game-saving play on a penalty shot in the first overtime period and Ohio Wesleyan went on to play Wittenberg to a scoreless tie in North Coast Athletic Conference action on Friday at Roy Rike Field.
The tie moved Ohio Wesleyan's NCAC record to 4-1-3. Ohio Wesleyan could be seeded second, third or fourth in the upcoming conference tournament. The NCAC's top 2 finishers will host semifinal games in the conference tournament on Tue., Oct. 30, or Wed., Oct. 31.
Wittenberg applied pressure from the opening kickoff, earning a corner kick and then seeing Amanda Farrell's shot hit the pipe less than a minute into the game. The Bishop defense again kept the Tigers off the scoreboard in the 
30th minute, when Tara Osborne sent a crossing pass into the box. Freshman goalkeeper Laura VanHoey (31 - Rochester, Mich.) came off the goal line to break up the play, but the ball rolled loose for a moment until senior defender Laura Harper (20 - Columbus/Worthington Kilbourne) cleared it out of the penalty area.
Ohio Wesleyan's best scoring chance of the first half came in the 35th minute, when senior midfielder Meg Smith (2 - Portage, Mich./Northern) lined up for a restart from 30 yards out. Smith served the ball into the box, and it carried to the goal line, where Tiger keeper Meghan O'Rourke grabbed it to maintain the scoreless tie.
Wittenberg had one more good shot in the first half, when Suzanne Medwid ripped a 20-yard 
blast off a restart that VanHoey snared for a save. The Bishops threatened early in the second half, with freshman forward Hannah Sterling (3 - Allison Park, Pa./Hampton) putting a header on goal that O'Rourke tracked down.
The Tigers had the majority of scoring chances during the remainder of the second half. Wittenberg's best efforts came in the 77th minute, when Farrell's header from point-blank range was blocked by VanHoey; and in the 79th minute, when Corey Shubitowski sent a perfectly-placed crossing pass from the right side to a sliding Farrell, whose redirect at an open net hit the crossbar.
Ohio Wesleyan put together one last rally, working the ball into the Tiger penalty area and getting a shot from sophomore midfielder Brooke Whitesell (15 - Dublin/Scioto) through traffic, but O'Rourke was there for the save with :30 left in regulation.
Just over 90 seconds into the first overtime period, the Bishops were called for a foul in the penalty area. Wittenberg's Lindsey Rusch lined up for a penalty shot, but VanHoey soared high and tipped the ball over the crossbar. The Bishop defense kept the game alive once more in the second overtime when Amy Meige's shot got past VanHoey but was cleared off the line by senior defender Jessie Seaver (16 - Ann Arbor, Mich./Greenhills). Wittenberg outshot Ohio Wesleyan, 17-8. VanHoey finished with 7 saves, while O'Rourke had 4 saves in the Tiger cage.
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Defense Rules Again!
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